Help to automate setting text in Illustrator from a Excel file?

[richhickman]

Hello all, I have been setting text / names for output on a plotter in illustrator for years and it takes ages.

They are always the same font, width and the only limit is the height of the text. (250mm by 100 mm high max).

I have wondered if there is a way to automate the task? A way to import the names from a excel file and have them all spaced accordingly and scaled to the desired size. A friend had mentioned that InDesign could have features to do this but I have no experience using that and would rather use Illustrator.

Any advice would be appreciated as my fingers hurt 🙂

Thanks.

[Doug A Roberts]

if there is a way of doing it in illustrator at all, it is vastly easier to do in indesign.

Merge data to create form letters, envelopes, or mailing labels in Adobe InDesign

you don't have to master the software, just that workflow.

[richhickman]

Thanks.

I will have to look into finding someone to develop this.

It would save me so much time. Never enough time

[Ton Frederiks]

Or have a look at this. Variables in Illustrator:

Prepression: Illustrator – VariableImporter Script Part 1 Tutorial